Missouri Hunter Harvests State-Record Wild Turkey

It was his first time hunting turkeys on this particular piece of land, and only his third wild turkey hunt ever, but when Jason Daugherty of Desoto, MO, took aim and dropped a gobbler he had called away from the company of four hens, he made history.

“My gobbler was the sixty-sixth biggest atypical gobbler bird ever taken in the State of Missouri based on spur and beard lengths. When the certified weight of the turkey [was factored], he was the number-one gobbler ever taken in the State of Missouri, and he scored as the seventh heaviest Eastern gobbler ever taken in the United States.”

Daugherty’s bird weighed in at 29 pounds, had three beards, and the spurs measured 1 1/4 inches long. The bird’s score was certified by the National Wild Turkey Federation.

Shannon Rikard is a freelance writer and photographer with a passion for conservation and wedding and portrait photography. The Archery Trade Association and National Wild Turkey Federation have published her work. A self-professed word geek, she enjoys Wheel of Fortune, crossword puzzles, and finding a dynamite synonym to illustrate any point. After starting her career in public relations with a national conservation organization, she ventured out on her own with Copper Door Studios.